San Elijo State Beach

Liz Brolaski didn't grow up in San Diego, but she's been living here and enjoying the ocean for the past 35 years. Brolaski did not surf when she was a kid; she began after moving here with her husband, a San Diego native. "I didn't want to have to just sit on the beach and watch my husband surf," she says. Now Brolaski surfs a couple times a week. On this day, she's with her 12-year-old daughter Dana; the two surf together every day during the summer. Liz and Dana threw their boards on top of Liz's SUV and headed down to San Elijo State Beach, next to Cardiff. (They live in Encinitas.) Liz surfs a 9' long board and Dana uses a 6'4" short board.

The Brolaskis have a WeatherTech mat in the back of the SUV to keep the sand and water out. They also have a "hitch safe," a device that fits into the hitch of their car and is big enough to hold a few keys and an alarm beeper. Their favorite surf accessory is a huge blue changing robe Liz got for Christmas -- roomy enough for the girls to change under without any problems. "That way I can change without being worried about my towel slipping down!" Liz says.